On October 21st, 2020, we will participate in the first-ever Virtual Travel & Adventure Show! This virtual event focuses specifically on European travel, featuring the top destinations, tour operators, and travel suppliers from around the world that specialize in travel to Europe. All of this is “virtual,” and it has been an adventure building out my booth in the last few weeks. I hope you drop by for a chat or a zoom meet-up.
I’ll be speaking on the DESTINATION STAGE about my favorite destinations, travel tips, and tours for 2021 and 2022. This is pre-recorded and available to view during show hours (5:00 pm-10:00 pm).
I am also featured on the new OTT channel, TRAVELSHOWS.TV! Additionally, that other travel guy, Rick Steves, will be speaking as well.
Of course, it would be great if you’d sign up for one or two of my 2021 and 2022 tours to Europe. It only cost $25 to hold your seat, and it is totally refundable should you decide not to travel.
As a bonus, I am offering a $100 discount on any tour booked during the Virtual Travel and Adventure Show and a $200 discount on any of my new Eastern Europe and Balkans tours. This is in addition to any other “alumni” discounts to which you are entitled. And by the way, this is the only time my complete tour line-up will be discounted in the foreseeable future. So signup for a tour. You have nothing to lose!
Finally, at 7:00 pm, I’ll be at my booth for a live zoom meeting discussing my new Eastern Europe and Balkans tours as well as chatting you up and answering questions. Get your favorite apertivo, and join me!
Since I consider you one of our VIP travel partners, I’d like to pass along this exclusive code that allows you free tickets to visit our virtual booth and experience the entire show. Follow this link and enter promo code: VTAS100DMEE on the ticket selection screen to unlock the free ticket option.
I’m looking forward to seeing you next Wednesday, October 21st, at the Virtual Travel & Adventure Show focusing on Europe!
Are you itching to travel in 2021? I am too! We’ve rolled out all twenty of our tours visiting 13 countries in Europe, hoping this pandemic will be in the rearview mirror by Spring 2021. I’ve participated in more than my fair share of tourism-focused zoom calls and webinars in the past months. Early on, the news was dismal. No tourists anywhere! But, after almost eight months of a travel lockdown, surveys indicate Americans are ready to get out there and get back to traveling. But, they want to do it safely and sensibly!
Like many, I want to get out there and go, but I want to be safe at it. That probably means holding off until a vaccine is developed and widely available. However, we’ve prepared all or departures, booked hotels, and have transportation standing by, in hopes that we all can get back to traveling early next year. With that hope, why not take a look at the tours we are offering for 2021 and provisionally sign-up for one? It will cost you a mere $25 to sign-up, and that is fully refundable up until 30-days before your tour departure. I’ve put all my tour resources online, in one place. You find all of this and more at https://davidmcguffin.com/tours/.
Check out my tours and departure dates,
browse digital scrapbooks from our alumni,
find out about the McGuffin travel style, and why it’s different (and better) than most others,
experience what it is like being on tour by following the day-to-day activities of a David McGuffin group in Ireland,
Browse or print my entire tour catalog.
Finally, I’ve got several projects cooking on the front burner and about ready to premiere. Stay tuned to my website, this newsletter, and my social media pages for more information in the coming week. Until then, I wish you all the best. Stay safe, be sure to social distance, wash your hands often, and wear a mask.
I’ve visited Dublin many times, in fact all my tours to Ireland begin and end in Dublin City. When I’m leading a tour, I usually arrive a day or two before the group tour, and have a few days to do some exploring on my own to discover new places to eat, see, and experience. I’ve spent years poking around Europe’s nooks and crannies in search of excellent food, good wine, better beer, and sparkling water. I guarantee you’ll experience some outstanding restaurants that serve up amazingly fresh and local dishes on all my tours in Europe. But for this post, I’ll give you some of my best dining picks for Dublin City.
THE OLD STOREHOUSE -3 Crown Alley- Temple Bar https://theoldstorehouse.ie/ I’ve been visiting this popular pub for 10 years now. Manager Robbie and his capable waitresses, waiters, bartenders, and cooks, will make you feel right at home, The food is remarkable and varied. There is a fine selection of starters, mains, and desserts, all of which are sure to please. There is nothing of the notion of bland pub-grub here, everything is fresh and hot right out of their small kitchen. I tasted most of their main courses and must say they are all excellent. My favorites are: Beer Battered Fish and Chips, West of Ireland Seafood Chowder, Steamed-Fresh Connemara Mussels in a cream sauce, Traditional Guinness and Irish Beef Casserole, and Irish Cottage Pie. I hear the desserts are good, but by the time I finish a pint and a meal, I’ve never had room for the sweets.
TOMAHAWK STEAKHOUSE – 2-5 Essex Street East – Temple Bar https://tomahawksteakhouse.ie/ It is pricy, but their dry-aged Delmonico steaks are wonderful. An added bonus is its oyster bar serving fresh oysters from Ireland and Europe.
THE CHOPHOUSE– 2 Shelbourne Road – Ballsbridge – Dublin 4 http://thechophouse.ie/ A bit out from Dublin’s city center, but worth the 30-minute walk or €10 taxi fare. The 10 oz. Dry-aged Irish prime Ribeye is the best cut of Irish-raised beef I’d had on the island. Additionally, they have a varied menu including chicken, duck, pork, and a selection of tasty starters as well.
Baan Thai Leopardstowne – P, Central Park, Carmanhall and Leopardstown, Dublin, D18 N2W6, Ireland http://www.baanthai.ie/ We often stay with our groups in the Leopardstowne suburbs of Dublin. When I think of the best Thai food, my mind wanders to Baan Thai. They have all the traditional selections served in a decorative dinner room.
THE IRISH HOUSE PARTY DINNER & TRAD SHOW – The Irish House Party The Lansdowne Hotel 27 Pembroke Road Dublin 4. https://www.theirishhouseparty.com/ For an evening of traditional music, dancing, stories, and good food to boot, try The Irish House Party at the Lansdowne Hotel. Show up at 18:30 and order your food off a three-course menu selection. Enjoy dinner and a fine music and dance show featuring excellent musicians.
AN EVENING OF FOOD, FOLKLORE, AND FAIRIES AT O’SHEA’S PUB 19 Talbot St, North City, Dublin 1, D01 FA49, Ireland https://irishfolktours.com/ Similar to the House Party mentioned above but here you’ll enjoy stories told by engaging and entertaining Irish folks with a passion for the old art of storytelling. Good food selected from a 3-course set menu with lots of choices.
More suggestions to come…
To truly understand a David McGuffin tour, you have to see it to believe it. This film documents the journey of four travelers on David’s “Taste of Ireland” tour. Filmed on location in Ireland, we hope it will give you a sample of just what to expect on a David McGuffin tour to Europe.
Since we cannot travel to Europe right now, I am bringing a bit of Europe to you. I yearn for the day when I can hop on a plane and fly to Europe, but, for now, I’ll have to settle for my memories. So, as much for me, as for you, I’ll share David’s Weekly Wanders in Europe.
This week, David’s Weekly Wanders in Europe features a video, David McGuffin Explores Volterra! It is the third of several episodes chronicling the experiences and adventures on David’s Best of Italy Tour route. Along with his producer, Abby, and their travel companions, David visits this charming Tuscan hilltown to learn about its history, sample wine, and dine in style.
Video is at the bottom of this page, but first, a little about Volterra.
Volterra is my favorite Tuscan hill town and the perfect place for a visit. Not too big, not too crowded, and certainly not loaded with tacky tourist shops; it is authentic in every way. It is a beautiful town surrounded by ancient fortifications, guarded by an impressive fortress, and perched high on a hill overlooking the fertile fields of western Tuscany. Visiting here tends to make you forget about touring and focus on settling into the laid-back lifestyle of the local folks.
It’s hard not to “go local” with a visit to the market or a stop at the neighborhood bar to knock down an espresso. Engage in conversation with the shopkeepers and get lost wandering the narrow, cobbled streets. On the town square, enjoy a crisp glass of wine at a café and then hang out for the late afternoon passeggiata where everyone gets out to visit. Finally, enjoy a tasty dining experience featuring some of the best restaurants in Tuscany. Embrace Volterra and experience la dolce vita!
Here it is mid-August, and I’ve not left the USA in eight months! For many, that is not uncommon, but Europe is my office, my job, and my livelihood. This Pandemic has affected everyone in the world in one way or another, but the hospitality, travel, and tourism industry has taken quite a blow. What was to be a record-breaking year for Exploring Europe came to a screeching halt on March 10, 2020. That’s when I contacted COVID-19, and shortly afterward, all travel shut down in and out of the USA.
Since mid-March, we have postponed, pushed back, rescheduled, or canceled almost every Exploring Europe tour scheduled for 2020. That’s terrible news for us and those who were looking forward to exploring Europe with us. The good news is that we are still in business and ready to show our friends around Europe when travel becomes possible again. I’ve given up trying to guess when that might be, but whether it is in one month or many, we will be ready!
Looking to the future
However, just because it is possible to travel to Europe without going into quarantine upon arrival, does not necessarily mean we will rush into it. A David McGuffin tour is a unique, interactive, and personal travel experience. One of the aspects that sets our tours apart is the opportunity to meet, interact, and become friends with locals living and working in our destinations. Our trips will not be the same if we have to adhere to rigid social distancing rules, wear masks 24/7, and worry about being infected by the Coronavirus.
On our tours, we love to spend time with our traveling guests experiencing the sights, museums, and attractions in a sensible fashion, and having some downtime to relax and enjoy the locale. Attempting these things from behind a mask or at six-feet intervals would invariably take some spontaneity and adventure away from the total travel experience. I’ve spent the last twenty years honing our travel and tour style to come up with the perfect combination of cultural immersion, history and art lessons, engaging experiences, and unstructured free time. I’ll not schedule any tour until these experiences are again possible, reasonable, and safe.
Check out our tours to Europe.
However, we are actively planning for that day when it is possible to hop on a plane, fly to Europe, and travel freely.
You can sign-up for any of our tours online, by mail, or by email, by completing an application and paying a fully refundable $25 deposit. No other investment is required until the final payment due date, which is about 45 days before departure.
Want to travel on your home turf?
Many of you have contacted me during this Pandemic, suggesting I begin offering tours in the USA. I appreciate your ideas and concern, but I’m getting too old to learn a new continent! However, if you have a hankering to travel on your home turf, I want to introduce you to MOLLY’S OLD SOUTH TOURS. Molly Verlin is a wonderful young lady who leads tours for me in Italy. Since there is no work in Italy this year, she’s taken her love for the South, and designed some wonderful travel experiences. On Molly’s tours, you’ll discover the hidden history, culture, hospitality, and down-home cooking of the American Southeast. Molly will guide you through the ancient Spanish city of St. Augustine, the pristine beaches of Georgia’s Golden Isles, the elegant squares and parks of Savannah’s historic district, and the unique history, and charm of Colonial Charleston. I hope you’ll have a look at her website and consider a tour closer to home!
